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Wednesday, September 4, 2013

This is madness. No decent woman behaves this way in public!!MADNESS?THIS IS DETROIT!!!!!!I had actually slowed down writing these sorts of posts because they're too obvious. However I am currently super busy with paid work. So this quick and short post was something I couldn't resist. I'm from Detroit. Most of Detroit's convenience stores aka "party stores", independent grocery stores, gas stations and phone reseller shops are owned and operated by citizens or immigrants of Middle Eastern descent who stereotypically, fairly or not, often have a reputation for treating their clientele with disinterest, avarice and contempt. The clientele is mostly African American and it, stereotypically, fairly or not, often has a reputation for disrespect for other people's property and flying off the handle at the slightest hint of unfairness. I've seen both groups do shady stuff. No one should shop where they're disrespected or cheated. I was taught that from day one. If I were in charge I would bring down the full force of criminal/civil law on people who think because they operate in Detroit they can sell postdated milk or overpriced used junk repackaged and branded as new. I would unleash city, county and state regulators on city businesses until there was no quantifiable difference in cleanliness and quality between city stores and suburban ones. But I would also remind people that if they don't like another group owning many businesses in what they consider "their" neighborhood, there's no law preventing them from getting off their rusty dusty and opening their own business.

The African-American woman (I can't call her a lady) in the video was foul. Was the store clerk was cheating her? He may have been. Rules around refunds and returns are often quite flexible. Perhaps the shop owner or manager had noticed some irregularities with returns/refunds and insisted on a strict limited refund policy. Who knows?I don't know the state or federal laws on refunds. I am going to look them up. But if the woman felt that she was being given the runaround, disrespected or cheated there are methods to resolve that situation which don't involve damaging other people's property or God forbid showing the world something that it really didn't ask to see. I certainly don't think there were people clamoring to see that. No. At least I know I wasn't. But as always YMMV.

It makes it more difficult to demand that others treat you with respect when you yourself won't act in a respectful manner. That was something a deviant three year old would do. I understand anger. There is even a body of research that suggests that it's good to vent anger rather than hold it in as many people feel compelled to do. But even venting anger has to be done within certain limits. And this woman crossed those. Even if her complaint was valid, her reaction destroyed any sympathy I would have had.

Thoughts?

If the clerk had physically tried to prevent the woman from damaging the shop would he have been in the right?

This is madness. No decent woman behaves this way in public!!MADNESS?THIS IS DETROIT!!!!!!I had actually slowed down writing these sorts of posts because they're too obvious. However I am currently super busy with paid work. So this quick and short post was something I couldn't resist. I'm from Detroit. Most of Detroit's convenience stores aka "party stores", independent grocery stores, gas stations and phone reseller shops are owned and operated by citizens or immigrants of Middle Eastern descent who stereotypically, fairly or not, often have a reputation for treating their clientele with disinterest, avarice and contempt. The clientele is mostly African American and it, stereotypically, fairly or not, often has a reputation for disrespect for other people's property and flying off the handle at the slightest hint of unfairness. I've seen both groups do shady stuff. No one should shop where they're disrespected or cheated. I was taught that from day one. If I were in charge I would bring down the full force of criminal/civil law on people who think because they operate in Detroit they can sell postdated milk or overpriced used junk repackaged and branded as new. I would unleash city, county and state regulators on city businesses until there was no quantifiable difference in cleanliness and quality between city stores and suburban ones. But I would also remind people that if they don't like another group owning many businesses in what they consider "their" neighborhood, there's no law preventing them from getting off their rusty dusty and opening their own business.

The African-American woman (I can't call her a lady) in the video was foul. Was the store clerk was cheating her? He may have been. Rules around refunds and returns are often quite flexible. Perhaps the shop owner or manager had noticed some irregularities with returns/refunds and insisted on a strict limited refund policy. Who knows?I don't know the state or federal laws on refunds. I am going to look them up. But if the woman felt that she was being given the runaround, disrespected or cheated there are methods to resolve that situation which don't involve damaging other people's property or God forbid showing the world something that it really didn't ask to see. I certainly don't think there were people clamoring to see that. No. At least I know I wasn't. But as always YMMV.

It makes it more difficult to demand that others treat you with respect when you yourself won't act in a respectful manner. That was something a deviant three year old would do. I understand anger. There is even a body of research that suggests that it's good to vent anger rather than hold it in as many people feel compelled to do. But even venting anger has to be done within certain limits. And this woman crossed those. Even if her complaint was valid, her reaction destroyed any sympathy I would have had.

Thoughts?

If the clerk had physically tried to prevent the woman from damaging the shop would he have been in the right?

Why didn't the woman just take the store to small claims court?

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